No Guts, No Glory: Wii Disassembly and the Optic Blues

My Wii's DVD drive (bought at launch in 2006) is very noisy and can no longer play dual-layer discs, so I need to open it up and replace/repair it. Using the official cleaning kit didn't help.

There are three screws on the exterior I just can't get off, and can't take the faceplate off or proceed any further until I do. I've been careful not to keep turning the screwdriver and strip them, but I think I've made enough failed attempts that it may have happened anyway. I am using a 1.4 mm flathead because I can't find a small Phillips that will push against the screw at all. I've used the rubber band trick and it didn't help.

Some plastics require a little pressure. Put your finger under the edge (the red triangle one is the battery for the Wii) and gently lift by applying upward pressure while unscrewing. Try a similar tactic with the GC/port black plastic screws.

A small one; I don't "measure," simply use what fits and is at hand. I do have some fairly tiny ones, however. I have not ran into this with Wiis, but the advice I gave is sound enough (to me, it would be more likely the case if this Wii had been dismantled prior). Not sure why you're having an issue, do wish you luck on it though.

This whole thread makes me think of those kid toys with battery compartments. You know, the ones you unscrew but they don't unscrew. Yet, get the compartment lid by the edge and gradually pull up while you're unscrewing and voila!

The smallest Phillips I have is a #0 and I can't get any grip with that. The local hardware store doesn't stock anything smaller. #000 is the smallest size, but I think that's only used in certain camera parts and I'm worried it would be too small.

EDIT: Okay, Amazon has some #00 screwdrivers, which are apparently the ones needed to open an iPhone. Problem is, some of the reviews say that the drivers strip themselves after a single use.

I successfully disassembled the Wii and replaced the drive with the tools I already had! It was just a problem of leverage. I tried different angles and positions until I got it.

So far the drive works good. The Wii is now just as quiet as when I bought it and loading times are much shorter. Brawl and Xenoblade play again. I have noticed one small problem, though: the drive insertion/injection motor sometimes stops for a moment when pulling in a disc (but not when ejecting). Is this a symptom that it's starting to fail? Hopefully by the time it breaks again, I will own a Wii U and will no longer have a need for the original.